Search Request Form

Conveyancers, solicitors, buyers and sellers use council searches to check a property before settlement. The City of Gold Coast (the form is issued by the Council of the City of Gold Coast) offers these searches through an online form or the printable Search Request Form. The 2026/27 form has four sections: contact details, property details, access details for searches that need an inspection, and a schedule of search components with fees. Council's terms on the form say the information comes from its records, which do not necessarily reflect the actual state of the property, and that people making financial or legal decisions should obtain their own professional advice.

When you need it

• You are buying or selling a Gold Coast property and want a rates and water search before settlement, for example to confirm the property description, rates and water charges, water meter reading and any outstanding balances.
• You need building records, a building compliance inspection, a certificate of classification or final inspection certificate, or copies of building or drainage plans.
• You are buying a business or licensed premises and need a health search or trade waste compliance search.
• You need a limited, standard or full planning and development certificate, a copy of a decision notice, or confirmation that a development approval is still in effect.

1. 1

   Choose a payment method

   Tick cheque or Eftpos (in person only). Business Partner Account holders are asked to submit online instead. Use block letters and complete everything; council says incomplete forms will be returned.

2. 2

   Section 1 - applicant details

   Give your reference, name, postal address, date, phone and email. Mandatory fields are marked with an asterisk.

3. 3

   Section 2 - property details

   Enter the lot number and registered plan number and the property address (including unit, floor or tenancy number), all mandatory. Add the type of premises, vendor and purchaser names and settlement date if applicable.

4. 4

   Section 3 - access details

   Required for building compliance, full planning and development certificates, health searches and trade waste. Give the name and number of the person who can provide access, and the business or trade name. Council warns that missing access details may cause delays and re-inspection fees.

5. 5

   Section 4 - search components

   Tick each search you want. For building plans where you are not the registered owner, or the owner or applicant is a corporation, attach owner's authority: the owner's signed authorisation on the form, a settlement letter from the applicant's solicitor (a contract of sale is not acceptable), or written authorisation from an authorised officer. Complete the extra details for decision notices, approvals or sewer infrastructure drawings where asked.

6. 6

   Total and declaration

   Add up the fees for the searches ticked, then sign and date the declaration accepting the terms and conditions on page 5.

• Online: submit the Search Request online form on the City of Gold Coast website and pay fees by credit card on submission.
• In person: submit the printed form and pay at a council customer service centre, Monday to Friday between 8.15am and 4.30pm.
• By mail: send the form with a cheque, money order or bank draft payable to City of Gold Coast, to the Chief Executive Officer, City of Gold Coast, PO Box 5042, GCMC QLD 9726. The form says to attach cheques with a paperclip only.
• Fees: each search has its own fee, listed on the form and in council's Search request fees and charges document. Check the current fees before lodging. Council says fees are payable whether or not information is found, with no refunds for unsuccessful searches.
• Timing: council says rates and water search results are emailed, usually within 10 business days. The form gives indicative times for other searches, for example 15 or 25 business days for building records and inspections.
• To cancel, email search@goldcoast.qld.gov.au. Cancellation fees may apply depending on how far the search has progressed.

• Order the rates and water search early. Council says a buyer must submit a rates and water search before requesting settlement figures, and settlement figures can be updated for a specific date free of charge once the search is in.
• Allow at least 2 business days after submitting the search before requesting settlement figures, according to council's settlement figures page.
• A building compliance inspection is not a structural or building and pest inspection; the form says so expressly.
• Some planning certificates have different timeframes or are not available for lots affected by the Local Government (Robina Central Planning Agreement) Act 1992. Check the notes on page 3.